The Aging Face
The aging process results in the sagging of facial skin due to a number of factors, including loss of elasticity and volume. The deep facial structures lose volume, particularly in the bone and fat. This volume loss results in a relative excess of skin and midfacial descent, i.e. a tired and aged appearance. A youthful face appears full with high cheekbones. Fat can be used to revolumize the areas of volume loss due to aging and it can also be used to directly fill wrinkles.
The Procedure
First, liposuction is performed to harvest fat. Liposuction and fat transfer can be performed under local anesthesia in the office. The local anesthesia will make the process relatively painless. The fat donor area will be anesthetized and gentle liposuction will be used to collect enough fat to revolumize the face. The procedure can also be performed under general anesthesia when multiple procedures are to be performed. For example, facial fat grafting can be combined with a facelift, or full body liposuction.
Areas that can be filled in the Face
- Cheeks (cheekbones)
- Nasolabial folds (laugh lines)
- Temples
- Pre-jowl
- Marionettes (frown lines)
- Lip wrinkles
- Forehead
Don’t forget the Hands!
The face and hands are the two areas that are always exposed and are a give away for the signs of aging. So, if you are going to treat the face, treat the hands at the same time. Fat can also be injected into the back of the hands to hide the veins and tendons, and improve the wrinkles.
What about Fillers?
Facial fillers such as Juvederm and Radiesse can achieve similar results. These off the shelf fillers are beneficial because no surgery needs to be performed, however the results with fillers are temporary and they can be quite costly when you factor multiple syringes and repeated treatments. Fat injections have the potential benefit of being more long lasting and when a large amount of volume correction is necessary, fat is plentiful, and is more cost-effective compared to fillers at larger volumes. Fat is also the most natural way to augment the face, and it would be unlikely to have a negative reaction to your own fat.
Recovery from Fat Injections and Liposuction
The face will display some minor swelling after the fat injections, and you may develop some bruising. Most people are able to apply some concealer and go back to work the next day. If micro liposuction is performed, just to harvest the fat necessary for the facial fat transfer, you will have very little downtime, and most be would be able to go to work the next day. If you are having a full liposuction of the donor site to treat that area as well, then most people would be able to back to work after about 3-4 days.
Fat Injection and Liposuction Risks
Liposuction is real surgery and carries a small risk of complications. Risks of surgery include bleeding and bruising, infection, multiple small scars, fluid collections, asymmetry, loose skin, skin irregularities, contour irregularities, and blood clots. Risks are often dependent on your current medical condition. During your consultation, we will discuss your specific risks of surgery.
Call now at (855) 496-4646Â to schedule a consultation and procedure with Dr. Dass.
